


For a date with you

by EvancexLizzie



Series: 2020 Dimilix Week [1]
Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Day 1, Dimilix Week (Fire Emblem), Dimitri Is Awkward, Felix is Awkward, Fluff, M/M, Pining, Prompt : Modern AU, well at least they're trying
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-14
Updated: 2020-02-14
Packaged: 2021-02-28 00:33:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,944
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22704757
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EvancexLizzie/pseuds/EvancexLizzie
Summary: 2020 Dimilix week, Day 1: Modern AU“It's a helluva start, being able to recognize what makes you happy.” - Lucille BallWhen he first moved out of his parents’ house, Dimitri didn’t expect to attend university and work at the same time. He doubted he had the qualifications to be a proper barista, not being the most dexterous person on Earth, and certainly not the most comfortable with other human beings.However, as Dimitri looks up to see the new customer standing on the other side of the counter, his next breath stays caught up in his throat.
Relationships: Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd/Felix Hugo Fraldarius
Series: 2020 Dimilix Week [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1633060
Comments: 4
Kudos: 42





	For a date with you

**Author's Note:**

> Hi everyone !! I've been in the FE3H for some time now but never got to write fics, so here we go. 
> 
> Dimilix is my favorite FE3H pairing and im so delighted to take part in the Dimilix week. Hope everyone enjoys it as much as I intend to.
> 
> This is no beta-read aaand English aint my first langage so dont hesitate if you see any mistake !!

“So, Dimitri, how's been your first week? So far so good?”

Dimitri turns around to look at Glenn, who’s watching him with a smile on his lips.

“I-It’s going great. Thanks for asking.” He thinks briefly, before adding. “I think I still need to work on my speed though.”

“Don’t worry about that,” Glenn dismisses with his hand, “you’re doing fine for someone who’s never worked in a coffee shop before. Speed will come with the experience.”

Dimitri thanks Glenn for the compliment and the advice with a firm nod, a sight blush emerging on his cheeks. He didn’t expect to be praised so quickly for his work while it’s only been his first week as a part-time barista, with absolutely no experience in terms of customer service. 

Glenn sure is a nice manager and a friendly person. 

At the moment, they’re the only employees running the shop. It’s a rather small place, but it’s located near the hometown university Dimitri is attending so it can get pretty crowded during peak hours. He met the two other part-time employees, a nice energetic girl named Annette and a rather shy boy called Ash, during a common shift earlier this week.

When he first moved out of his parents’ house, Dimitri didn’t expect to attend university and work at the same time. His parents had far enough money to cover all expenses related to his studies. However, Dimitri had soon found he had a lot of free time and no idea how to spend it properly. Even though he studied regularly and joined the athletic team from his college, he didn’t have anything to do on most afternoons and weekends. Moreover, Dimitri was shy and prone to social anxiety, which didn’t make the whole ‘let’s meet and hang out with tons of new people’ thing easier.

It was his father, during a phone call late in the evening, that had advised him to look for a part-time job. The morning afterward, Dimitri had received an email from his parents with a coffee shop address, saying that the son of one of his college buddies was currently running it and was certainly looking to hire new employees. 

Dimitri could still remember the nervousness he had felt just before meeting Glenn. He doubted he had the qualifications to be a proper barista, not being the most dexterous person on Earth, and certainly not the most comfortable with other human beings. 

“So, you’re Lambert’s son? Nice to meet you.”

Thankfully, Glenn knew how to make people at ease. They had talked for a few minutes about Dimitri’s motivations and past experiences, and even though Dimitri had quickly confessed to having no skill whatsoever, Glenn had brushed it off and answered that as long ad Dimitri was motivated and eager to learn, there would be no problem.

The first week had gone by in a blink of an eye for Dimitri, and he found the job to be rather interesting. He was still clumsy, would often spill milk on the counter instead of inside the coffee cup, and his latte art looked more like a three-year-old drawing than anything else, but he was serious and cautious in everything he did. He was also polite, friendly and engaging with each and every customer, which was already earning him regular clients, mostly girls who ordered with a blush on their cheeks and fleeting looks.

Not that Dimitri would notice any of that, but he still genuinely smiled at them and repeated their name to make sure he didn’t make any mistake while writing it on the coffee cup.

In any case, it was nice.

It’s Thursday afternoon. If it’s as Glenn told him earlier, they likely won’t have a lot of new customers before their closing time, and the shop is nearly empty. Dimitri busies himself by cleaning the different counters and tidying everything so it’s well ordered for Annette’s shift tomorrow morning. It’s the least he can do to thank her for accepting to exchange shifts.

He is rearranging the different cartons of milk under the main counter when the doorbell quietly rings, announcing a new customer. Dimitri immediately stands up straight to welcome them, forgetting that the door of the cupboard above him is still open. 

A loud bang resonates inside the shop and Dimitri’s head suddenly feels on fire as a scream of surprise and agony leaves his lips. He closes his eyes for an instant, trying to cope with the sudden rush of pain that hits his forehead and spreads through his head, and stumbles a little before steadying himself. 

After a few seconds, he dares touch the injured part of his forehead with his fingers, already feeling a bump forming on top of it. Great.

“Hum, he, are you okay here?”

Dimitri looks up to see the new customer standing on the other side of the counter. His next breath stays caught up in his throat.

It’s a young man, certainly around the same age as Dimitri, a little smaller in terms of height from where he stands. He’s undeniably pretty, Dimitri thinks as he rubs his injured forehead. His face has nice features, lacking any apparent flaws. Given the current look of the wrinkles on his forehead, it looks like the boy spends more time frowning than smiling, but that doesn’t take away any of his charms. Two brown eyes are looking at him, with what feels like a mildly concerned look. 

What strikes Dimitri the most is his hair. Dark blue strands are framing his pretty face, while the rest of it is nicely pulled in a small ponytail behind. This distinctive color reminds him of something, or rather someone. Actually, there’s an overall sense of deja-vu, even if Dimitri doubts he has ever seen anyone this pretty. He would certainly remember it more clearly.

The stranger’s frown deepens. 

“You should put some ice on your forehead, you know. Before it gets bigger.” He speaks again, and Dimitris snaps out of his trance all of a sudden.

That’s when he realizes he hasn’t even answered the previous question nor does he remember it. Dimitri feels like he’s been frozen for the last twenty seconds, too busy staring at the new customer in a rather impolite manner. 

“Y-yes, sorry, you’re right.” His head still hurts like hell but he will certainly take care of that after serving this handsome guy. Dimitri approaches the counter, a smile on his face. “Sorry for the wait, and, huh, everything.” He has trouble gathering coherent thoughts, as the stranger keeps looking at him with what seems a mixture of concern and annoyance. “So, what would you like to drink?”

The stranger seems to hesitate for a moment and turns away his stare from Dimitri to take a look at the latter’s surroundings as if he was looking for something precise. Dimitri can’t help but notice the little points of gold that perfectly blend with the beautiful brown color of the customer’s pupils. 

After a few seconds, the stranger’s stare gets back to him, apparent annoyance on his face. Dimitri swallows with great difficulty. He can feel the tip of his ears burning being so thoroughly scrutinized. “I’ll take a latte, regular size, no sugar. To take away.” He makes a short pause. “Please.”

Dimitri nods and takes one of the cups located net to the cash machine. His heart definitely beats far too fast for his own good, being looked at with such an intense stare, and right now it feels like his fate depends on how well he will manage this latte. Unfortunately, the cup escapes his slightly shaky hands, and he fumbles with it before succeeding in catching it properly. He lets out an internal sigh of relief seeing that at least, the cup didn’t fall.

He feels that the stranger is carefully watching his every move with that particularly displeased frown. That doesn’t help his clumsiness for the least.

Dimitri takes the black pencil and looks back at the customer. His throat feels so dry he has trouble getting the words out of it. “C-Can I have your name please?” He quickly adds. “It’s for the coffee.”

Dimitri immediately regrets those words as they come out of his mouth, as a particular doubtful look appears on the customer’s face. It was so utterly stupid to feel the need to clarify what the name would be used for, but Dimitri’s thoughts are such an incoherent mess at the moment that it feels hard to sort out coherent sentences.

“Thanks for the precision, I wouldn’t have guessed on my own.” The stranger didn’t bother hiding his disdain behind sarcasm. “Felix.” 

It is said so quickly that Dimitri almost misses it, but he’s pretty sure that if he were to make the customer repeat his name, the latter would clearly leave the shop. Or burn it down with a single gaze.

Dimitri’s hand is still slightly shaking as he writes the name on the cup, putting all the care possible to write it as beautifully as possible. “So, Felix it is…”

He has taken the habit to repeat the customer’s name, so the latter can rectify if they feel the need too. But Felix doesn’t nod or shake his head. He has his arms crossed against his chest and just stares bluntly at Dimitri. 

Dimitri tries his best to not meet the powerful gaze and looks at the cash register as he types the price. “Five dollars thirty cents, please.”

“By card.”

If annoyance had a precise tone, it would be this one without a doubt, but Dimitri thinks it’s rather funny. As Felix hands him his debit card and Dimitri places it on the card machine, he can’t help but take a look at Felix’s family name written on it. A gesture out of sheer curiosity, and certainly not because he plans to stalk him on social media later, or ask around at the university. Indeed, if Felix is around his age, then he’ll most likely be a student, and there’s only one university he can attend in the surrounding area.

However, Dimitri can’t help but frown while reading Felix’s last name and realize how familiar it sounds. He looks up to Felix, a question on his lips he doesn’t dare to spill out when he’s cut by another voice.

“Oh, Felix!” It’s Glenn, who just got out of the office room where he often disappears if there is no present rush. He comes to stand next to Dimitri, looking at Felix with a smile. “What are you doing here?”

Felix merely grunts, and if Dimitri thought he couldn’t appear more annoyed than he already did, he was clearly wrong about that.

“I came here to pick up Annette.” 

“Oh, that’s a shame because she’s not here. Annette switched shifts with Dimitri, so she’ll be working tomorrow morning instead.” Felix’s eyebrows shift slightly, and his gaze turns quickly to Dimitri before settling again on Glenn. “She didn’t tell you? That’s odd.”

There’s another grunt, and Felix doesn’t even bother to make a full sentence this time. He just takes his phone out of his pocket, stares at Dimitri one more time and types on it, forgetting about the two employees.

Dimitri tries not to think too much about the whole situation, focusing instead on Felix’s drink. He avoids drawing latte art on the top of it, fully knowing that he still doesn’t have any talent. He also kind of wants to be forgotten for the moment and to stop receiving such angry stares. Well, he has been the one asking Annette if she was fine switching their shifts. 

This being said, he certainly isn’t at fault for her oversight that resulted in the current strained situation.

However, Glenn seems to be pretty used to Felix’s annoyed reactions because he keeps talking to him normally.

“So, Felix, I hope you weren’t harsh to the new one.” Dimitri quickly glances at Felix to see his reaction, and indeed he gets to watch him roll his eyes towards the sky. “It’s already hard enough to recruit people, it won’t make it easier if you scare everyone off with that attitude of yours.”

Felix scoffs.

“Have I already mentioned how terrible you are at acting like father?”

“Yes, at least a hundred times.” There’s a short pause, and Dimitri starts to understand why Felix seemed so familiar. They’re obviously from the same family, and certainly brothers by how the conversation is going. “So, how are your classes going? Did you make any friends yet?”

Felix answers with a mere grunt and the conversation between the two goes on like this for a minute. Dimitri tries not to listen, but it’s hard considering there’s currently no one else in the coffee shop. He quickly finishes the drink and hands it over to Felix. The latter is still texting on his phone, with an angered look on his face while half-answering to Glenn’s questions. He sighs in frustration, looks at Dimitri with that usual annoyed stare, and takes the drink.

“Thanks.” He turns around, ready to leave the shop, and stops right before the entrance to take a look back at Glenn and Dimitri. “Bye.”

“See you tonight! Don’t get back home too late, sweetie.” Glenn answers with a huge smile.

Felix scoffs in annoyance and disappears behind the door he abruptly closes.

When Dimitri gets back to his apartment one hour later, he can’t help but feel slightly depressed. 

Glenn has confirmed afterward that Felix was indeed his little brother. He was the same age as Dimitri, also attending the local university but not in the same specialty. He was a member of the swimming pool team, like Annette, and both of them had training on Thursday night, which explained why Felix would come and pick up Annette at the end of her shift. By the way Glenn talked about the two, they seemed to be at least friends, which meant Felix wasn’t as asocial as he appeared to be. 

But well, their first encounter has been an utter disaster, with Dimitri hitting his head hard against the cupboard and ending up with a huge hump on his forehead -that made Glenn laugh, at least-, and then just being… awkward and clumsy. So yeah, there were few chances that Felix would be willing to be friends with someone like him.

Glenn did tell him to not mind Felix’s outright displeased attitude too much, as he seemed to behave like this with pretty much everyone. In any case, it wasn’t as if Dimitri would cross paths with the other boy too often, Felix only setting foot in the coffee shop to pick up Annette after her afternoon shifts on Tuesday and Thursday, when Dimitri wasn’t working.

This was meant to cheer up Dimitri, yet it didn’t. Even if Felix hasn’t been the most engaging person, to say the least, he still found him very attractive and hoped for their next encounter to be a little more friendly and certainly a little less awkward.

However, unlike what Glenn has said to Dimitri on this day, Felix often comes to the coffee shop, at least during Dimitri’s shifts.

It takes a while for Dimitri to realize that Felix’s visits often arise when Glenn isn’t there, and that may be the reason Glenn thought that Felix never came to the coffee shop.

Dimitri makes a lot of effort to not be as awkward as he was the first time, but he finds it to be pretty difficult around Felix. There’s a particular atmosphere surrounding the man, something that screams do not approach me and Dimitri wishes he could listen to this and stay at the safe distance, still he finds himself drawn to him each time.

If their encounters are always rather short -Felix always takes his coffee to go and doesn’t linger at the counter-, at least they have small conversations outside of the usual customer-client exchanges. He usually comes near the closing time, which makes him one of the last customers of the day and allows them to talk without being bothered by other orders.

“I heard you were new in town.”

It first surprises Dimitri, because he hasn’t pictured Felix as the one to make small talk. When he looks at him, to make sure he’s the one Felix is addressing, he finds Felix fumbling with an empty cup of coffee, not staring at him as he usually does. 

“Ah, yes. That’s true.” He gets back to the latte he’s making for Felix. By now he knows the order by heart. “I came here to attend the Garreg Mach university. My hometown college didn’t have the specialty I wanted.” There’s a short silence before he continues. “Glenn told me you were also attending college, in business study.”

He tries to make it as nonchalant as possible, and not as if he has fished information about Felix from Glenn. From what he has seen from the last interactions, the sole mention of Glenn tends to make Felix scowl.

“I do.” Dimitri can feel Felix’s intense stare on his back. His cheeks feel warm, all of a sudden. “Don’t study that though, it’s complete bullshit. I hate it. And people here are nothing more than a bunch of dickheads.”

“Ha.” Dimitri wonders if Felix talks about him in the same way he talks about his comrades, as he finishes the drink and turns around to hand it to his customer, who thanks him with a nod. “That’s... rather sad. Did you want to attend college?”

Felix shrugs, the drink between his hands. “My father didn’t let me the choice. So as long as he coughs up, guess I’m stuck here.”

Dimitri sure hasn’t expected Felix to share that much about him. He honestly doesn’t know what to answer, apart from feeling sad about the whole situation. His parents would never force him to do anything he didn’t want, so it was hard to imagine how this could happen in others’ homes.

“Well, I still hope you will end up enjoy your studies.” Dimitri says with a gentle voice, smiling at Felix.

"... I don't see why it matters to you." Felix answers with a frown.

Dimitri suddenly feels like he shouldn’t have said that, afraid of having taken the conversation too far for Felix’s liking. He quickly has to say something, anything. 

Unfortunately, that's exactly when his mind decides to shut off and let the incoherent rumble of thoughts take control.

"Hum. Well, if-if you kept on not enjoying it and finally decided to give up college, I guess you would not come here anymore." The words come out of his mouth and he doesn't know how to stop them. He’s honestly surprised by everything he says. "And that would be… I-I would be sad. I guess." 

Upon realizing what he has just said, Dimitri feels his cheeks burn as his mouth goes dry. He can barely swallow the lump threatening into his throat while he watches Felix's face going through some indefinable expressions. He could swear he just saw those brown pupils widen slightly.

Right now, Dimitri wishes nothing more than to crawl into a hole under the parquet of the coffee shop and never get out of it.

The worst is certainly looking at Felix -because it would be even worse if Dimitri started to find what's happening outside the window more interesting- and waiting for an answer that doesn't come. It feels like ten minutes passing by, while it is more like ten seconds, but Felix has the ability to make the employee forget about rational notions like time or boundaries.

Ten very long seconds of feeling utterly awkward.

"There’s no need to sulk about that for now. Even if this town is pretty much shit, it’s not like I have anywhere else to be." 

It sure sounds assertive, yet Dimitri's gaze wanders to Felix's fingers which are fidgeting against his coffee cup in a way that could almost be described as nervous, hasn’t Felix been the one to hold the beverage. He sounds fare too confident to be nervous when talking this casually. Anyway, he has no reason to be anxious as Dimitri is the one who just made a fool of himself.

"I'll let you go back to work," Felix speaks again, and Dimitri's stare falls on his beautiful face which seems to have regained a little composure. "See you."

He doesn't wait for Dimitri's answer before turning around and stepping outside the coffee shop. Dimitri stills waves him goodbye, and when left alone, lets out a huge desperate sigh as he crawls under the counter out of embarrassment. He really needs to work on his small talk.

Thankfully, this awkward encounter doesn't prevent Felix from coming back the next time Dimitri has an afternoon shift. Their conversation keeps being small and simple, just asking about their respective days and how they’re handling all the deadlines from the different seminars. They also talk about their respective sport. 

It's always short, and rather factual, but Dimitri likes it. He likes Felix's bluntness, how he simply states things or gives his opinion without hesitating. Some people might call it rude or uncalled for, but the blond finds it rather impressive. He wishes he has the confidence to talk with such certitude and without trampling on words. 

He finds himself waiting eagerly for this time of the day where Felix crosses the doors and asks for the same beverage. Weirdly enough, even though they're attending the same university with certainly similar schedules, they never talk about meeting outside of the coffee shop. Dimitri wouldn't mind actually, but he is far too shy to ask, and far too afraid of what rejection looks like. And, well, what could he propose anyway? A coffee date? 

Felix looks like the busy type of person, and certainly not the one who indulges himself in common study time, or anything that involves being in a group. He likely doesn't have time for dates, hell he doesn't even have time to come to the coffee shop as often as before.

Dimitri tries not to worry too much about it. He knows the deadlines for their assignments are getting closer and he even brings his homework when he’s working at the coffee shop so he can take a look at it during off-peak hours. But it would be a lie to say that he doesn't miss Felix. 

It's been a week since he last saw him. It's mild afternoon, some students are sat inside the coffee shop while Dimitri looks at something over his phone. It's an article about the nicest places to take your date for Valentine's Day. He internally sighs as he goes through the article, a painful reminder that he still doesn't dare to ask Felix for a normal date, so he's even less likely to gather the courage to ask for Valentine's Day. Moreover, at this rate, he doesn't know if he will have the chance to see Felix before.

Dimitri hears the quiet doorbell and raises his head, excitement bumping in his chest. However, it's not Felix, just a regular customer. Dimitri tries his best to hide his disappointment and takes the order, before turning around to prepare the matcha latte. Lately, he has become better at latte art, but he still isn't confident enough to show anyone the results.

He’s far too focused on his task, holding the cup in one hand and the hot milk pot in another, to hear the quiet footsteps coming from behind him. 

"Hey, Dimitri-"

Dimitri literally jumps out of fear and surprise at the unexpected sound of his name pronounced by that too familiar voice. The consequences are disastrous.

Due to the shock and the rush of adrenaline, his right hand suddenly crushes the coffee cup, making all the matcha powder spill on his work clothes, his apron and his arm, while his other hand loses its grip over the hot milk pot, letting it slip and fall at his feet, some of the hot liquid being poured on his pants as a result. Dimitri can't help but scream at the burning sensation as the heated milk penetrates through the fabrics to spread on his skin.

"Dimitri !" 

He turns around slowly, doing his best to not show how much it hurts and how shameful he feels for being this clumsy and incompetent once again. In the meantime, Felix’s first reflex was to grab a bottle of cold water from the fridge and he leans toward Dimitri's feet to spill the liquid on the dark stains. Dimitri can feel immediately himself ease at the pleasant sensation. He cautiously looks at Felix whose usual frown seems aggravated and an urging sense of guilt and shame grip his throat and stomach.

"I-I am so sorry…"

He doesn't know what else to say, feeling beyond flustered. Felix looks up to meet his gaze, opening his mouth to say something when they're cut off by Glenn coming out of his office. 

"What happened? Dimitri, are you alright?"

Glenn looks at the utter mess spilled on the floor where Dimitri stands, and the latter shamefully follows his gaze. Milk, water and matcha powder are laid across the parquet along with the pot and the crushed coffee cup, the whole picture looking nothing more than a horrible mess.

"I-I…" He feels ashamed and overwhelmed. And his legs fucking hurt.

"I went out to greet Dimitri and took him by surprise." Felix cut him before he has the chance to make an idiot of himself by speaking nonsense. He has finished spilling the water on his pants. "I didn't think about letting him finish his order before speaking. It's my fault." 

Dimitri's bottom lip slightly trembles while hearing Felix speak. He wants to say something, to admit his fault and assure Felix that he did nothing wrong. He is the clumsy one, the one that can't do anything with his hands but break things or let them slip.

But words are stuck in his throat as he sees Felix willingly take the blame. He feels too ashamed to speak and too angry at himself. His hands tighten into fists and he wishes he could just hit the next wall until his knuckles were bleeding or the wall was crumbling.

"Dimitri, it's nothing serious, things like this happen all the time." Dimitri doesn't know which expression lays across his face for Glenn to feel the need to reassure him like this. He just nods, fully knowing he doesn't deserve those kind words. "You should go and change your pants, otherwise the burn is going to worsen. Felix and I are going to clean this, don't worry." He turns to the unfortunate customer whose order currently lays at Dimitri's feet. "Sorry for the incident, I'm going to make another…"

Before he can speak or act, Dimitri feels his arm being pulled by a careful hand that guides him toward the changing rooms. He knows that it's nothing too serious, that he needs to be an adult and snap out of it, that he should change quickly and get back to clean up the mess instead of moping like a child. But his body is stiff with anxiety and his mind too busy blaming himself to act like a responsible adult.

He waits until he’s alone in the changing rooms to let out a desperate sigh and rub his face out of embarrassment. He can still feel the burn on his legs, the pain and the sticky feeling of milk against his skin, but he lingers on it for a moment. Because he deserves it. He deserves the pain.

"Dimitri, take off your pants."

Dimitri lets his arms fall back against his body and turns his head to meet Felix's intense gaze. That's when he realizes that Felix went with him in the changing rooms. 

Amidst the haze of what happened, Dimitri's mind seems to slowly get back to function. He thinks for a moment before answering. "I-I don't have any spare pants." 

Felix looks at him, his arms crossed against his chest. Dimitri feels scrutinized, once again, and has trouble meeting this intense gaze. Then, Felix just walks out of the room, letting Dimitri alone.

If Dimitri wasn't already overwhelmed with shame and guilt, he would certainly panic and wonder what caused to make Felix abruptly leave without a word. But his mind is too occupied processing the matcha latte incident to cope with anything else at the moment.

Dimitri seems to regain enough sense to remember that he still needs to take out the stained pants that make him ache so much. He doesn't know how he’s going to finish his shift or make it back home without proper pants, but he figures that he can wash them with more cold water, quickly dry them and then put them back until he hits home.

He undoes the button of his pants and starts taking them off when the door of the changing rooms opens again.

Dimitri freezes, pants halfway down and underwears apparent, and turns to look at Felix who still holds the clench of the door, a startled look on his face, his mouth slightly open.

Well, to be fair, lots of men have already seen Dimitri in underwear, and Felix has certainly seen as much during his previous years of high school. Changing rooms are a common thing, after all, and boys are used to it, even more if they're practicing sports.

So, why does it feel so awkward all of a sudden?

Felix's gaze switches from Dimitri's bare legs to his face. He opens his mouth, then closes it. Before opening it again.

"I brought you some spare pants." He doesn't seem that affected by the whole situation and Dimitri -whose slight blush is apparent on his cheeks-, wonders why he’s the only one who gets to feel uncomfortable. "Those are my tracksuit, for when I'm usually done with the swimming."

He closes the door and hands them over to Dimitri, who slightly hesitates before taking them. 

"Are you certain about this? I can certainly wash my pants and dry them here if you need yours."

"You can have them, don't worry about that."

The tone is firm and Dimitri doesn't insist, even if he isn't convinced. He feels even more guilty now, depriving the poor Felix of his spare pants because of his clumsiness and ineptitude. 

He thanks Felix and changes pants. While doing so, he notices that Felix does his best to not look at him, and takes a sudden interest at the billboard hung next to the door. Once again, there's an awkward atmosphere between the two and Dimitri doesn’t know why. He wishes everything was more simple.

"I-I am deeply sorry for what happened earlier." He eventually says, after realizing that he didn't pronounce any coherent word back then. "I will talk to Glenn and properly apologize."

"You don't have to." Felix turns around. His gaze wanders quickly to his pants that Dimitri is now wearing, and the latter wonders why his frown deepens. Then Felix slightly coughs before going on. "I meant it when I said it was my fault. I should know better than take someone by surprise while he's working."

"That's…" not what happened ? "I…" should have been more careful? 

Dimitri wants to say those things, but the look in Felix's eyes prevents him from speaking further. It's a warning look, that makes his cheeks heated and his throat dry.

"You're certainly not the most dexterous person in this town." It's an understatement, but the flat tone makes Dimitri crack a smile. "And maybe another person wouldn't have let that happen." Felix makes a short pause and carefully looks at Dimitri. "But It doesn't mean you have to take the blame for everything.”

Strangely enough, Dimitri doesn't feel the need to contradict him. He knows that guilt and shame aren't feelings that go away so easily, because he’s used to them lingering on his mind, but Felix's words do ease his conscience a little. 

"Thank you, Felix." He hasn't had the occasion to pronounce his name much lately, and god he missed it. "I am indebted to you for this."

Felix shrugs in a way that seems a little exaggerated, but Dimitri thinks nothing of it. "If you really feel this way, just pay for my next coffee." He makes a short pause and turns around so he's showing his back to Dimitri, facing at the door. "Here, or somewhere else."

Dimitri isn't sure he has heard well, but he certainly hasn't got time to answer as Felix quickly opens the door and gets out of the room.

He hangs in the room for a few seconds, lingering on those words. He can feel the deep-rooted tension in his body ease away, followed by a warm and cozy feeling that rumbles inside his chest and spreads through his body. 

Without realizing it, a dumb, happy and genuine smile takes place on Dimitri's lips. It's been a long time since he’s felt this delighted. 

Maybe he doesn't have to be too afraid of asking Felix for a coffee date, after all.

However, time flies quickly and with the exams and assignments coming at the beginning of February, the coffee shop gets busier. It's a warm place for students to relax and study. Less strict than a library, but still allowing students to flee their apartment and all the temptations hiding inside.

As such, each time Felix comes, they hardly have any time to talk. They barely ask how the other is doing before Dimitri has to take care of another customer, and that even though Annette is here to help him. 

He feels frustrated by the situation, as he fully knows he has no choice but to bear with it.

"You two never exchanged numbers?" asks innocently Annette one day, after Felix has left the coffee shop. They're talking while making the orders. 

"I have never thought about asking, to be honest." Dimitri doesn't handle well technology, and he knows how awkward one can sound by text. It's already difficult enough to not be embarrassed when talking directly, he’s not sure that texting would serve him right.

"That's a shame." Annette hands over a coffee to a customer with a smile, before looking back at Dimitri. "Are you gonna ask him to be your date on Valentine's Day?" 

Dimitri nearly chokes with his saliva and thanks the Gods for having a firm grip on the coffee cup for once, or there would be another matcha latte incident. 

"He-...I-..." Dimitri knows he isn't subtle about his crush. Moreover, Annette is Felix's best friend, so she certainly knows stuff. Anyway, he isn't sure he wants to learn what Felix could have said about him. "I… don't know."

"Well, it's in five days you know. I think you should go for it, and not wait too much." Annette frowns while looking at him, and Dimitri knows all too well where she learned such an expression. "If it gives you any courage, Felix doesn't have any plans. Maybe he's waiting for someone to ask him out."

Dimitri tries his best to hide his blushing face and trembling lips as he steps a few feet away to wash some dishes. It's still close enough for Annette to hear what he says. "I-I want to ask him. But I cannot find the proper time." 

Annette deeply sighs. "That's what texting is for." She's making another coffee next to Dimitri. "I swear, you two act like we didn’t invent the internet." 

Dimitri doesn't answer, mainly because he thinks that Annette is right. It is pretty dumb to not have asked for his number, or for a date, or for anything that would allow them to properly talk outside this coffee shop.

He decides that he needs to rectify this. A determined look on his face, as he feels the rush of adrenaline and emotions through his body, he decides that he’ll formally ask Felix to be his date for Valentine's Day.

"... Dimitri, I don't know what you're thinking about but you just broke the plate with your bare hands."

On Valentine's Day, Dimitri is depressed. 

He didn't have the opportunity to ask Felix to be his date, as he had to switch shifts with Ash and ended up working during mornings. As such, he hasn't crossed paths with Felix during the week.

Glenn decided to do something special for Valentine's Day at the coffee shop. If people were to come with their date, then their second order would be free. As Dimitri goes to take the afternoon shift, the shop is already quite crowded, and a queue is starting to form outside. 

The afternoon goes by in a blink of an eye, without allowing a minute to rest for Dimitri, Ash or Glenn. Cute couples go by the counter one after the other to order and Dimitri fondly smiles at each of them. He can tell that some have already been dating for a few weeks, or months, whereas the shyness of others show it's certainly their first official date. 

The thought of Felix and their missed opportunity still lingers painfully in the back of his mind, but he doesn't have time to think about it as orders don’t stop coming.

At the end of the afternoon, when the pile of orders is mostly done and people aren't queuing anymore, Dimitri allows himself a deep sigh of relief. It certainly has been one of the busiest afternoons he’s had since he started working here. They still have thirty minutes to go before closing the coffee shop, but he and Ashe already are already cleaning and tidying things up.

"Well done boys." Glenn appears behind them. He has taken off his apron and puts on his jacket. "It's been quite a busy day, I sure didn't expect to have this many people coming."

"Glenn, are you… going on a date?" Shyly asks Ash, and that's when Dimitri realizes the bouquet of flowers held in one of Glenn's hand.

"Ah, yes. With my girlfriend." Glenn fondly smiles. Dimitri isn't sure his manager ever mentioned having a girlfriend before. "Well, we've been together for a few years now, so it's not like we're gonna do anything fancy tonight. But, huh, I'm still trying to be romantic." 

Dimitri wonders if she ever came to the shop and what she might look like. Glenn is an handsome man for sure -not as handsome as Felix, but still-, so his girlfriend must also be quite the beauty.

"Well, in any case, I'll let you guys do the closing. Don't hesitate to close sooner, I think you've earned it." They both nod. "And well, I hope you two spend a great evening." 

Glenn winks at both of them before disappearing behind the door.

Dimitri resumes his cleaning of the counter. He wouldn't mind closing sooner but, to be honest, he doesn't have anything planned for the evening and is more afraid of getting depressed once he'll be alone in his apartment. Earlier, he heard Ash shyly talking about his date on the phone with someone, and he can't help but feel a little envious. 

He should have asked Felix weeks ago instead of being this shy and helpless. 

The doorbell rings but Dimitri doesn't pay much attention to it, as it's been ringing non-stop for those last hours. He puts the dish towel aside and raises his head nonchalantly, with a sweet smile ready, when his eyes widen.

Felix walks to the counter, his stare meeting Dimitri's. Sure he's got his usual frown and ponytail, yet Dimitri can't help but wonder if something has changed. After examining him more cautiously, he thinks it's the first time he’s seen Felix wearing a shirt, instead of his usual sweatshirts. He also seems to have forgotten about the tracksuits or washed-out jeans, to put on some nice dark blue pants that quite match the color of his hair.

He looks... nice, well beyond nice, Dimitri thinks, swallowing a lump down his throat. It suits him well, to say the least. 

Felix must have had something important to do earlier, to be dressed like this.

"Hey." Felix stares at him, his hands straight in his pockets. "How are you holding up? Heard it's been quite busy today."

"Oh, huh, yeah." Dimitri nods, smiling sweetly. "But it went fine, I think. I did manage to not spill any milk on the floor at least." 

Felix's eyebrows raise a little like he is honestly taken aback by Dimitri's accomplishment. "That's something. Maybe your clumsiness isn't beyond salvation, after all."

"I would not be too eager about it, but there may be some effective progress." He makes a short pause. God, he missed talking to Felix. "So, the usual?"

Felix nods. "Please." 

He goes for his wallet, and Dimitri's gaze comes across the little board where Glenn wrote the current promotion for Valentine's Day. There's a second of hesitation, as blood rushes to his mind and his heart starts beating faster, and all coherent and rational thoughts leave his mind.

"Ho, huh, no need to pay. It's free for you." His throat feels so constricted he has a hard time to spill out words.

Felix gives him a doubtful look. He doesn’t appear to have read the sign. "Listen, if it's about the other day, with the incident, I-" he stops before speaking further, a little hesitant, but Dimitri doesn't let him finish anyway.

"No, no, it is not about that. It's…" He nervously plays with the pencil between his fingers while his look goes from Felix to the sign. He suddenly doesn't feel capable of voicing his thoughts, as his cheeks get warmer.

Thankfully, Felix's gaze follows Dimitri's and stumbles upon the sign. He seems to read it quickly, comprehension forming on his face, even though his expression nearly stays the same, and Dimitri wishes he hasn't done that. When Felix looks back at him, his face burns so much there's no way the other boy wouldn't notice his apparent blush.

Felix's stare goes back to Dimitri's face. "Hum. Thanks." He adds quickly. "I didn’t know you were doing that also for people who come alone."

Dimitri's mind goes blank for a moment hearing Felix's reaction. Thanks? Just what does he think? That Dimitri has been up offering coffee to everyone who didn't show up with a date? It took him so much effort to say out those words and it leads to a misunderstanding!

Or maybe Felix didn't misunderstand, but he doesn't want to bluntly reject Dimitri. That sounds utterly possible. But why Felix would have considered a possible date the last time, in this case? Maybe he’s changed his mind.

Dimitri doesn't answer and starts doing the latte. He feels angry at himself for hoping, angry at Annette for making him think that Felix also wanted this. He slowly exhales to calm himself and decides it's certainly not Felix's fault in any case. For the moment, he just needs to stay composed and polite.

He finishes his drink and hands it to Felix. He hopes that the other boy is at least going to notice the little drawing he made on top of the drink, that took him months of training. This is his last chance of getting a date.

But Felix doesn't look slightly interested in the drink. He keeps staring at Dimitri, to a point where even Dimitri starts to frown. That frown truly is contagious.

"So, huh, what are you doing after your shift?" It is said with so much casualty it almost feels forced. 

"Nothing special." Dimitri distracts himself by cleaning a glass with a dishtowel, careful not to break it. He needs distraction for his hands. "And you?"

"Nothing either." 

There's a long silence, where both of them suddenly seem to find what's around them far more interesting than the other. Dimitri gets why he’s avoiding Felix's gaze, it's far too embarrassing, but he doesn't get why Felix does the same. Unless-

Well, there’s only one chance to know about that.

"Do you-"

"Are you-" 

They both stop, looking at each other all of a sudden and realizing they spoke exactly at the same time, surprise written all over their faces.

"Sorry," Dimitri says first. "You go first."

"Actually, you spoke first." Felix immediately answers with the usual frown, but his flickering look betraying his slight embarrassment. "So you should go first."

Dimitri exhales as much as he can. Stubborn Felix, with his arms crossed against his chest and his finger taping frenetically against his armpit, while the other hand’s gripping the untouched cup of coffee as if he’s waiting for something he’s just ordered, is sure attractive but also rather annoying.

"I-It was not…" Dimitri needs to gather some courage and ask properly. He knows it, but this intense stare has the faculty of making him forget about what needs to be done. It's far too intimidating. "Would you… like to do something after my shift?"

Felix raises one of his eyebrows and takes a sip of his coffee while examining Dimitri. Here goes away the drawing. "You know you're proposing this on Valentine's Day, right ?"

"Oh, i-it doesn't have to be romantic or a-anything," Dimitri answers, too quickly for his own liking as he stumbles on his words.

"But what if I want it to be romantic?" 

Felix's fleeting look and the slight blush on his cheeks are hard to miss, even for someone as oblivious as Dimitri. He takes another huge sip of his coffee, nervousness written all over his face.

The sudden realization that… Felix might be as nervous as him about this whole thing warms up Dimitri. He stares at him with a fond, genuine smile, blush coloring his pale face, before speaking. 

"Then I would like that as well."

Felix grunts as an answer, but his gaze doesn't leave Dimitri's face.

However, for the first time, it feels more affectionate than intimidating.

A few minutes later, as they both get out of the coffee shop, after Ash -a slight blush on his face certainly meaning that he has heard at least a part of their conversation- has assured him five times that he could close alone, Dimitri's nervousness hasn't calmed down. He stares at Felix and wonders if he feels the same agitation

There seems to be some hesitation in Felix's movement as if he was weighing on what to do next and after a few seconds, he turns around to face Dimitri and present his arm. 

As if it was the most natural thing of the world, a gesture they were both used to, Dimitri slides his arm underneath Felix's one as his hand grips tightly the blue-haired boy’s armpit. 

It feels nice, to be this close. 

"So," Dimitri starts, looking at Felix and realizing how fast his own heartbeat is pacing. "Where do you want to go?"

Felix shrugs. "I don't care." He may realize how harsh that sounds, because he quickly adds while making sure to avoid Dimitri’s gaze, "As long as you enjoy it, it'll be fine."

As they go down the street, toward a nice Chinese restaurant they both have never got the chance to try, their arms interlaced, Dimitri starts to get accustomed to this pleasant glow spreading through his body; warming up to the idea of his heartbeat fastening for another emotion than crippling anxiety.

He can finally spend time with Felix and that’s all he needs to be happy.

**Author's Note:**

> Before anyone asks, Dimitri had drawn a little cat face but welp, guess he'll have to do another one lmfao
> 
> my twitter is @Fate_Evance anyway, hope you enjoyed the fluff because tomorrow we're going straight to the angst hell
> 
> (kudos and comments are appreciated, thanks <3)


End file.
